Page 2 of The Sicilian's Obsession
Arturo
What fresh hell was this? A few days ago, a contract came through with an easy job. Security for the Sweets Incorporated princess of science. I haven't been out in the field in a while and figured a change of pace would be nice. If anything got too hot to handle, I could always call in reinforcements, but I doubted this was a serious mission at all. Besides, I investigated her father, and it really seemed like a simple job. Babysitting duty, really. I figured I'd get in, hang around and get out when the contract was up, but Katima Sweets was absolutely not what I had prepared for. I was expecting a young, bratty princess, not this nervous looking angel. She was beautiful, petite, her dark curly hair thrown in a haphazard bun. It sat on top of her head like a beacon. She had on a lab coat with a movie t-shirt, jeans, and comfortable shoes. A minimalist, I liked it. Her glasses were overly large on her tiny face and I made a note to ask her if they were on purpose or for show.
I prompted, "Testing?" I had no clue what she was talking about.
She said tersely, "Yes."
Confused, I said, "Your assistant said I could just walk in."
Katima gasped, her hazel eyes wide with shock. She squeaked, "What?" I noticed she was very direct with her answers. Maybe her bumbling earlier was from nervousness.
I clarified for her, "I don't know if you know what I'm supposed to do here, but I am supposed to be in the lab."
She looked past me and asked, "Time?"
What happened to full sentences?
"It's about lunch." I checked my watch just to double check. My natural clock was never off. Katima started cleaning up her area, so I waited to see what she was going to do. The lab looked clean to me, but she grabbed a ton of supplies out of a small closet and started cleaning. I stood stoically for an hour just watching her clean from top to bottom. I had a feeling if I wasn't watching her, she would grab a toothbrush and scrub the grout. Good thing I was here. She glanced up after hanging her lab coat up and looked surprised to see me standing in the same exact spot.
"L-let's g-go." She motioned me back and I, for one, didn't want to make a mess after watching her clean, which was exhausting to look at.
"Are you heading to lunch, Ms. Sweets?" Katima's PA was super friendly. I'm almost certain she was flirting with me when I entered the building. I looked at Katima, who held up one finger, whipped out her phone and then stared at her PA until the phone at her desk rang.
"Sweets Incorporated, Rebecca speaking." She paused. "No, Mr. Sweets. I didn't mean—" She was cut off and her whole face lit up like a tomato. She hung up and glared at Katima.
She said through gritted teeth, "I apologize, Ms. Sweets, for not checking to make sure you weren't currently experimenting." Her mouth was stretched into a thin line. Katima motioned for us to move forward.
I thought,oh, there's the princess.It's not her fault she's a disappointment to me. For some reason, I thought she would be different from the little, rich princesses I usually watched over.
I sighed, "Want to go to Greta's Diner downtown? I saw it when I was driving in." Best to get to know her, since we'll be spending all our time together. Katima nodded her head in agreement and I led her to my truck. We could have driven separately, but I wanted to dirty the princess up a little bit. She didn't object, just climbed in, and off we went.
Not that I spent time with many women, but are they supposed to be this silent? I kept glancing at Katima when we got to Greta's. She hadn't spoken a word since we were in her lab. Our waitress was a friendly, older woman named Greta, and I knew that she was the owner from a glance. I really liked this small town, but there was something odd. I couldn't put my finger on it, so I just sat back and did what I do best—observed. Katima hadn't ordered anything. In fact, she never even touched her menu. But our waitress brought her an orange juice and side salad. She didn't seem offended at all by Katima's silence. Frankly, I was sick of her being rude.
I motioned to the waitress. "Shouldn't you say thank you, princess?"
Katima whipped out her phone and I scoffed. What was she going to do, call her father? Her face flushed and she looked at the owner embarrassed. Good.
She sputtered, "Th-thank y-you."
I turned to smile at the lady, but she was shooting daggers at me with her eyes. Me. I wasn't the one who was being rude and couldn't show gratitude for my every whim being satisfied without asking. We sat in awkward silence. I could see the wheels in her head turning. Meanwhile, I was studying her. She sipped her orange juice but hadn't touched her salad yet. I vaguely wondered why. Greta brought my burger and fries out, slamming the plate down so hard, I was afraid it would break. She flounced back into the kitchen. I could see her motioning to the cook with her hands, complaining about me. This was really a weird town. Where I'm from, waitresses would've torn Katima a new one or at least spit in her food. I took a bite out of my burger, noting Katima picked her fork up. Maybe she had been waiting for me. If so, why didn't she just say that? My charge had me more and more confused.
Greta came back out and handed Katima a receipt.
"I put it on your tab as usual, Katima, but only his meal. Earl and I agree that yours was on the house." I shot a startled look her way.
She leaned forward and whispered loudly, "Next time, don't bring the asshole, yeah?" She shot me another scorching look and stomped off.
I demanded, "What the hell was that?" Katima looked down at her plate and shrugged. "No, she acted like I did something to you." I was outraged, outrageously confused. Katima was a spoiled brat. I think. I mean that's how she acted. I watched her more as I finished off my burger, noting she never tried to strike up a conversation. Women loved to talk. My sisters would never just sit in silence. They were always regaling me with their stories. There was more to Katima Sweets than what meets the eye. And I was just the guy to find out.
